Undercover Bride
by enjolrasatthebarricades91
Summary: Tensions run high when Mike Warren's new partner, ICE agent, Alexandra Petrova moves into Graceland. As they go undercover with the Russian mafia, will they risk everything to keep their covers intact?
1. The Morning After

Chapter 1

The Morning After

The mid-July sun shone brilliantly. Its rays beating down upon a jogger, causing sweat to bead down his face. To any passerby, the handsome man looked like any other mid-twenties, athletic, Californian. It was this unassuming charade that allowed him to go about his daily rituals without interference. What the chattering people walking up and down the beach did not know, was that this young man was actually an undercover F.B.I agent named Michael Warren. His morning runs were an attempt to burn off the rage and torment that his career caused him. On this morning, he ran to escape the feelings of anger that consumed and threatened to tear him apart.

The previous night, Mike and his friend and roommate, Paige Arkin, had ended up sleeping together. They had always harbored feelings for each other, feelings that they had suppressed for more than a year. After a few drinks, they finally allowed the mutual attraction to overcome them, over and over again until they were reduced to a jellified mess of limbs. However, when Mike tried to confront Paige about their tryst that morning, she had acted like it meant nothing. She said, "We just had some fun, Mike. Don't read too much into it." Her noncommittal response to their relationship caused Mike's temper to flair, forcing him to take refuge in his hour long trek down the Pacific coastline.

Most of the suffocating feelings had lifted by the time Mike skidded to a halt before the beach house that he shared with Paige and their four other roommates. It was a massive structure with an avant-garde post-modern flair. It was known as Graceland and it had come to be a flophouse for three different government agencies: the Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigrant and Customs Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Paul Briggs, Charlie DeMarco, Johnny Tuturro, and Mike were all FBI agents and Paige and Dale Jakes were the only representatives of their divisions, DEA and ICE respectively. They all worked together despite the interdepartmental rivalries and generally got along very well. Hence, romantic entanglements were usually frowned upon. The last time Mike had tried to maintain an intimate relationship, even though the girl was a civilian, the other agents, especially Paige, had discouraged it. Deep down, Mike had always felt that Paige had been secretly jealous of his ex-girlfriend, Abby. She had even gone so far as to tell him that unless Abby began to commit crimes; he should not stay with her.

Why then, when they had the opportunity to be together, did she treat him like a one-night stand?

As Mike entered the house, his mind a whir of thoughts, he caught sight of his friend, Johnny.

"Trying to run off those endorphins, Levi?" Johnny asked with an insinuating smirk.

Mike did not particularly care for the nickname that he earned during one of his first undercover cases, but it had stuck regardless.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Mike said, grabbing a water bottle from the refrigerator.

"I saw Paige leave your room in the middle of the night."

"We were talking, so what?"

"She likes to talk to you in only a bra and panties?"

"What were you doing up?" Mike asked, not denying the accusation, but trying to redirect his one-track minded friend, nonetheless.

"I was watching a movie. What does it matter?"

"What kind of movie?" Mike asked, raising an eyebrow.

Blushing Johnny said, "Ah, shut up dude. It wasn't one of those."

"One of what?" Paul Briggs, Mike's former training agent, asked effectively diverting Johnny's attention.

"Johnny was telling me about all of the pornography he watches at three in the morning," Mike said, gulping down the rest of his water.

"I was not," Johnny said defensively, his voice a couple of octaves higher than normal.

"The Bureau isn't paying you to watch dirty movies, Johnny," Charlie said, her Bronx accent making his extracurricular activities seem all the more nefarious.

Mike smiled broadly at Charlie's teasing and winked at Johnny, who just shook his head in exasperation before shoving a spoonful of cornflakes into his mouth.

"Um Mike," Briggs said, "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure," Mike said, his stomach dropping. Was Briggs going to ask him about Paige too?"

Following the senior agent out onto the veranda, Mike leaned against the railing, watching the waves lap up against the shore.

"The Bureau's got a shiny new case for us, Mike," Briggs said, resting his arms on the wooden railing. "How do you feel about going undercover with the Vory v Zakone?"

"The Russian mafia?" Mike asked incredulously. "Didn't Lauren already burn our bridges with them?"

He was referring to Lauren Kinkaid, a former Graceland resident and DEA agent who had almost blown her cover in an attempt to seek revenge for her partner, Donny.

"No, her cover held up," Briggs said, squinting against the sun's glare. "Besides, this is a different ring altogether."

"What's their story? Drugs? Black market organs?"

"Human sex trafficking," Briggs said, causing Mike to shiver despite the ninety degree weather.

"Sex trafficking? Why are we getting involved then? Isn't that Jakes' territory?"

Smiling, Briggs said, "That's why you're getting a partner."

Mike's brow furrowed in confusion, "A partner?"

"Her name is Alexandra Petrova. She's an ICE agent. The Bureau wants us on the case as well because they believe not all of the girls are foreign, some might be American."

"Wow," Mike said, stunned by Briggs' revelation. "When did you find this out?"

"About five minutes ago."

"Well, when does she get here?"

"When you go and pick her up." Briggs replied, looking down at his wristwatch. Harrumphing, he added, "Actually, her plane will be landing in thirty minutes…"

"Are you kidding me?" Mike cried. "Who planned this?"

"Don't look at me, I'm just the messenger."

"Damn it," Mike cursed, jumping into action.

"You'll have to beat Johnny's speed record, if you want to make it in time, Agent Warren," Briggs jested as Mike rushed off to retrieve his keys.

Surprisingly, Mike made it to LAX in record time. He should have contacted Guinness for an application; so he could make it into the newest edition of their book. No traffic lights had hindered his progress and his blatant disregard for the speed limit had gone unnoticed by L.A.'s finest.

Once inside the crowded terminal, Mike scoured the crowd for a woman that looked like she could be a federal agent. He couldn't help but smile at his naivety for he of all people knew that you couldn't judge a book by its cover.

After what seemed like an eternity of standing awkwardly in the middle of everyone, Mike noticed a young woman staring at him. Jumping on the hunch, he decided to venture over to her. What could it hurt? If it wasn't Alexandra; he would just play dumb.

The young woman beat him to the punch, "Mike Warren?" she asked, her green eyes wide and bright.

Taken aback, Mike asked, "How did you…"

Holding up his picture, the young woman smiled, "My case manager gave this to me."

Chuckling, Mike said, "He couldn't have found a more flattering picture? It looks like a mug shot."

"Kind of," the young woman laughed, putting the picture into her purse.

Mike could not help but notice how beautiful his new partner was with her large eyes and cropped red hair. She looked like a character straight from a Celtic fairytale. Upon closer examination though, Mike could see the prominent bone structure and slight almond eye shape that alluded to her Slavic heritage.

With a broad smile, the young woman held out her hand, "I'm Alexandra, but please call me Alex."

"It's nice to meet you, Alex," Mike said, grasping her hand.

He was impressed to note that her handshake was firm and confident as was her posture and general demeanor.

Dressed in an elegant black pantsuit, Alex radiated professionalism and class. It was an extremely attractive combination.

"Shall I take you to your new home?" Mike asked, offering to take her bags.

"Just lead the way," Alex replied, though she politely refused his gesture. She was a fiercely independent woman and desired to keep it that way.

The return to Graceland took significantly longer than the exodus, but it gave the two agents time to talk. Apparently, Alex's case manger had informed her of every nuance of the mission. She was extremely surprised to learn that Mike knew next to nothing about their roles.

"Do you mean to tell me that your training officer told you nothing?"

"He gave me the Reader's Digest version, but no…I don't have a clue."

"Well, essentially, we are going undercover as a couple. I'm a mail-order bride from the Ukraine and you are my American husband. My goal is to get hired as a maid for Mikhail Krysikov, the head Vor. He has a penchant for red heads; so I've been told. It shouldn't be too hard to…well, for lack of a better word, _seduce_ him. After that, I will try to secure you a position in Krysikov's inner circle. Even though you aren't Russian, he should be able to utilize your services."

"He'll want me to pick up the girls."

"You're quick," Alex said. "They told me you were the top of your class at Quantico."

Smiling, Mike said, "That seems to be the only thing that anyone seems to care about."

"Don't worry," Alex said with a sarcastic flair. "I'm not so easily impressed."

As they rolled to a stop in front of the house, Alex's eyes widened in awe.

"What?" Mike said, grinning at her fascination. "They didn't give you a picture of the house too?"

"No," Alex said, her voice taking on a reverential quality. "And, I never expected anything quite like this."

"It does take some getting used to," Mike said, removing his key from the ignition. "Come on; let's meet your new roommates."

As usual, the house was deserted upon entry, everyone having dispersed to their various assignments.

"Charlie and Johnny are probably in the phone room," Mike said, leading Alex upstairs. She was still slack jawed at the equally impressive décor inside of the house.

The sound of ringing telephones, pinpointed the direction of the appropriately named room. Entering the small office, Mike placed a finger to his lips as - who Alex assumed was - Johnny answered the phone and began speaking in rapid Spanish. The other agent in the room, a woman who appeared to be in her early thirties, just grinned lazily in their direction.

"No tengo," Johnny said, his tone indicating an argument with the individual on the other line. Finally, he concluded the conversation with a curt, "Adios," before slamming the phone down on the cradle.

"Damn, Mexicans," Johnny cursed.

"JT, you're Mexican," Charlie said with a smirk. "Why you gotta be so hypocritical."

"I'm sick of dealin' with these gang bangers. They're low live thugs and I'm not gettin' anywhere with them."

"Excuse our friend here," Charlie said, standing up, "You must be, Alex." Holding out her hand, she continued, "I'm Charlie."

"Nice to meet you," Alex said, shaking her hand. "And you must be, Johnny."

"Did you single me out based on my good looks and charm?" Johnny asked with an exaggerated wink.

"No, I pretty much narrowed it down when Charlie called you JT."

"Whew, thank God," Charlie said. "We have another smart ass in the bunch. When they said you were ICE, I figured you'd be some tight assed misanthrope like our buddy, Jakes."

Laughing, Alex said, "Oh, I'm a misanthrope alright, just not a tight assed one."

"Where's Briggs?" Mike inquired after they had a good laugh.

"Where do you think he is?" Charlie asked rhetorically. "Finding Buddha or surfing… I can't keep track."

"Huh?" Alex asked raising an eyebrow.

"Briggs is a yoga loving surfer," Johnny said. "Sometimes he cramps our style, but we still allow him to live here."

"Where is everyone else?"

"Well, Paige is hiding from, Mike," Johnny said, ignoring Mike's pointed glare. "And Jakes is probably off brooding somewhere, you'll meet them later."

"Where's Paige?" Mike asked in exasperation, directing the question at Charlie.

Of course, Johnny took it upon himself to answer anyways, "I told you, she left. She's still upset over your lover's quarrel."

Sighing, Mike turned to Alex, "First rule about Graceland, don't listen to anything that Johnny says."

"Noted," Alex said. "Are you a shit stirrer, Johnny?"

"Who me?" Johnny asked in mock horror. "Of course not. I am just a peer mediator, trying to help out my friends."

"Somehow, I find that hard to believe," Alex said with a chuckle.


	2. Confrontations

Chapter 2

Confrontations

There rarely came a time when Paige Arkin was caught off guard. When you spent enough time around low-life drug dealers and criminal masterminds, nothing really managed to phase you anymore. However, when she walked into the living room and took in the attractive red head sitting next to Mike, she felt her muscles go rigid. Inwardly cursing herself for succumbing to such schoolgirl jealousy, she forced a smile and said as brightly as she could manage, "This your new girlfriend, Mike?"

Under normal circumstances, Mike would have accepted this comment as a joke, but given the way that they had left things the night before, not so much. Turning his head to face her, he replied crisply, "No, Paige. This is my new partner, Alex."

"Oh," Paige said, trying to pretend that his curt tone had not hurt her. "Well then, welcome to Graceland."

"It's nice to finally meet you," Alex said, getting up from the couch to shake Paige's hand. "Mike has told me so much about you."

"I guess, as usual, my reputation precedes me," Paige said, giving Alex's hand a brief shake. "But if you'll excuse me; I've got work to do."

Alex's face fell slightly as Paige left the room, "Was it something I said?" she asked.

"No," Mike said, his brow furrowed. "Johnny was right. She's mad at me."

Nodding, Alex said, "Well, I guess that's my cue to hit the hay. I'll see you in the morning."

"Night," Mike said, forcing a smile.

After Alex had left the room, he found himself staring off into space. The anger that had coursed through his veins that morning returned with a vengeance and he contemplated going for another run. Instead, he decided to confront Paige.

Knocking on her door, he was met with a resounding, "I'm busy, Mike."

"Come on, Paige. This is elementary. Open up."

For a moment, he thought she was just going to ignore him, until he heard the click of the door unlocking.

"What do you want?" Paige asked, opening the door a crack.

"We need to talk about last night," Mike said, pushing his way into the room.

"No, we really don't," Paige replied, closing the door behind them.

"Really? Because right now, you are acting ridiculous. Did you forget who came on to whom, last night?"

"Oh please," Paige hissed. "Don't act like you didn't want it."

"I'm not saying that I didn't, but if you remember…I'm not the one who started it; I was just the one who finished it."

"I was drinking last night. I love everyone when I drink too much."

"So today, now that you're sober; you don't feel anything? You don't care at all?"

"That's not what I meant, Mike," Paige sighed in exasperation. "I just don't want things to get complicated."

"They're already complicated. Just tell me the truth. Do you have feelings for me?"

Paige was silent for several minutes before saying, "Of course I do. I have had them since we met, but Mike…I'm not the answer."

"You keep saying that," Mike interjected, the volume of his voice increasing. "The answer to what, exactly? Do you think that I am so broken that I need to be fixed?"

"Yes," Paige said. "After everything that's happened to you, I just can't…"

"Jesus, Paige, I do not need to be saved or fixed or anything. I know who I am and I know what I want. It's you."

Clearing her throat, Paige said, "Mike, I wish it were that simple, but we can't just start dating."

"Why? Are you afraid of what Johnny is going to say? He already thinks we're together."

"I just…" Paige began, but her words were silenced by Mike's warm lips upon hers.

Hot and insistent, their hands began to pick up where they had left off the night before, moving at their own accord. Removing his shirt, Mike pushed Paige up against the far wall. Fumbling with his belt, he quickly unzipped his pants before hiking Paige's dress above her hip. Pressing himself against her, he ripped away the thin lace barrier of her panties before plunging upwards in one fluid motion. Wrapping her legs around his waist, Paige grasped Mike's shoulders as he set a frenetic pace. Eyes squeezed shut; Mike gritted his teeth as Paige ran her long nails roughly down his back. Smiling in satisfaction, Paige allowed her head to fall back against the wall. Forcefully, she dug her heels into Mike's lower back, urging him to take her deeper. One of Mike's hands slapped against the wall, balancing as he supported the rest of Paige's weight with the other. Face red, skin moist with sweat, his body began to shudder violently. Paige felt her own body respond in a similar manner, Mike's name escaping her lips in a sigh of satiation. Paige's blissful expression knocked Mike over the precipice and he buried his groaning face into her hair. For several minutes, the two just stood there, soldered together. Finally, Paige ran her fingers through Mike's silky dark blonde hair, which was now slick with perspiration. His breathing still unregulated, Mike helped ease her down.

Brushing his lips across Paige's forehead, he said. "We could make this work, if you really wanted to."

Closing her eyes, Paige took a deep breath before replying, "You drive one hell of a hard bargain."

Mike chuckled; wrapping his arms around her still quivering, body. "I just wanted you to see what you would be missing out on."

"Oh?" Paige said, cocking an eyebrow. "Someone's pretty sure of himself."

"There are three things that I can do very well," Mike said with a mischievous grin.

Lifting her up, he carried her over to the large queen sized bed. "I can shoot."

He paused, laying her down upon the red Egyptian cotton sheets. "I can lie."

Paige shuddered as he began to place small kisses from her navel to her supple bosom.

"What else can you do?" she breathlessly asked.

"I can fuck."

Gasping, Paige's eyes widened. She had never heard Mike speak so forthrightly. He always chose his words carefully, rarely cursing aside from the random "hell" or "shit."

Blushing at Paige's apparent shock, he added, "I didn't mean to…"

"Just shut up and fuck me," Paige demanded, her shock quickly dissipating. She pulled him down for a passionate kiss, their tongues exploring each other's mouths.

"Wait," Mike panted, coming up for air. "What is your answer?"

Paige smiled, holding his face in her hands, "I'm willing to give this a go, but only if you promise to do it my way."

"Name it?" Mike said his eyes full of warmth and affection.

"No public displays of affection. I don't need my various C.I.'s and suspects to know that I have a boyfriend…it won't look good."

"That sounds pretty reasonable," Mike said with a grin before recapturing her lips.

Despite his suggestive declaration, the next time they united, Mike took it slow. He took the time to get to know Paige's body, exploring it, making it sing with desire. But Paige would not let his gestures go unreciprocated. She played his body like a violin, inciting him to call out so loudly that everyone in the house would, undoubtedly, confront them about it the next morning.

Afterwards, they lay tangled in the sheets, whispering to each other.

"God, you're amazing," Mike mused, stroking Paige's cheek.

"You're not too shabby yourself, Agent Warren," Paige said, running her fingers down Mike's heaving chest. "I honestly have never had three orgasms in a row before."

A blush erupted on Mike's cheeks at her directness. Now that his arousal was sated; he was easily embarrassed. However, he also felt a sense of masculine pride as well.

Clearing his throat, he couldn't hide the amazement in his voice when he replied, "Really?"

"Yes," Paige said, kissing his muscular arm. "All that running is really working for you. You know how to work those hips."

Before long, their conversation was cut short as the wave of endorphins that had engulfed their systems forced them to fall asleep, content in each other's embrace.

The next morning, Paige walked downstairs to the kitchen wearing Mike's shirt. She anticipated the jibs and jabs of her raunchy roommates, but surprisingly, was only met with the new girl. What was her name, again? Arwin, Andrea…

"Hey," the girl said uneasily, "How are you?"

"I'm fine," Paige responded with an awkward smile. She regretted acting like such a bitch the night before. It wasn't Anna's fault that she and Mike had been fighting. "Listen, I'm sorry about last night. I acted like a total asshole."

Shaking her head, Alex said, "Don't worry about it. You were busy. I act the same way when I'm on a case."

"No, I was being a bitch," Paige said in her brash manner. "Could we start over?"

"Sure," the new girl said, setting her spoon beside the bowl of oatmeal before her. "My name's Alex Petrova, I'm ICE."

Paige shook Alex's extended hand. "My name's Paige and I'm normally not a bitch. I was just having a fight with Mike so…I kinda took it out on you."

"No harm, no foul," Alex smiled, retrieving her spoon.

"Where is everyone?"

"Mike's running, I think Johnny and Briggs are surfing and Charlie went to the grocery store. I still haven't met the other customs agent."

"D.J.?" Paige asked rhetorically. "He keeps to himself. We hardly ever see him anymore."

"Oh," Alex said, clearly surprised that one of the house's residents did not want to be a part of the group.

Paige was just about to ask Alex about her case when Mike entered the kitchen drenched with sweat.

"Mornin' ladies," he said brightly, crossing over to the refrigerator. Reaching inside, he pulled out a bottle of orange juice with the initials, D.J. emblazoned on the side in black permanent marker. Pouring himself a glass, he turned to Alex, "How did you sleep?"

Before Alex could answer Johnny swept into the room, smelling of salt, his black hair soaked from the brine. "How could anyone sleep with the way you two were carrying on last night?"

"Are we seriously going to go into this again, Johnny?" Mike said with exasperation.

"I'm not crazy!" Johnny cried defensively. "I know what I heard."

"Yes, John Tuturro, we had sex," Paige said matter-of-factly, her arms crossed in front of her chest.

Just then, Johnny took in her outfit and a smile erupted on his face.

"You dirty dog!" he shouted in triumph, clapping Mike roughly on the back.

By now, Alex was practically drowning herself in her cereal; she was blushing so hard.

Noticing her discomfort, Mike said, "Alright, now you know. So, how was the surf?"

"No, no, no," Johnny said, grinning like the Cheshire cat. "You're not getting off that easily. I want details!"

"Get out of here you pervert," Paige said, grabbing the dishrag off the faucet and throwing it at his face.

"Ah, come on!" Johnny said, hurtling out of the projectile's path. "Don't be like that. I would tell you guys."

"And, we probably wouldn't want to know about your twenty-second encounters," Mike said, swallowing back the rest of his OJ.

"That's cold, man," Johnny said with mock seriousness. On his way out of the kitchen he added, "I'm telling Jakes that you're drinking his juice again."

"Damnit, Johnny!" Mike cried, but he had already left the room.

"Well, that was interesting," Paige said. "Sorry about that, Alex."

"It's alright," Alex said, but she wouldn't meet either Mike or Paige's eyes as she carried her dishes to the sink. Alex's discomfort struck a nerve in Paige, but she couldn't pinpoint, why.

"I'll see you both later," Alex said, looking up briefly. "I have to report to my case manager."

"See ya," Mike said in his affable way. Paige merely smiled.

When they were alone once more, Mike pressed a firm kiss upon Paige's lips.

"Well, by tonight, everyone in the house will know of our illicit affair," he said.

"Who cares," Paige replied. "As long as I can have you all to myself, I'm good."


End file.
